Five Times Paige Didn't Like Walter Being Over Expressive
by WeBuiltThePyramids
Summary: And one time she really, really did.
1. Chapter 1

**Every time I do a Five Times fic, either alone or as a collaboration, I swear to myself that I will never write one of these things again. But here I am. This one is not a collaboration, though one of my regular collab parters Heidi (FoxPhile) has helped me immensely in my outlining of this piece. This first chapter will be short since it's taken from an actual episode. The rest will be set in the future.**

 **ALSO I updated Here To Stay two days ago, but it didn't update in the story list and still says that it was last updated May 1. So if the last chapter you read was the team receiving news of the bombing, there is a chapter after that that has been published.**

* * *

 _"You did a fantastic job. Really superlative."_

A blooper from Friends came to Paige's mind, Matt LeBlanc snapping _it's fucking fire_. As Toby pointed out, cavemen made fire. People heated their house with woodstoves. Kids lit fires on beaches. Sure, she and Ralph didn't have matches, but with pieces of glass and tissues and other material from the plane, it hadn't taken them long at all to get one blazing. And once they had, there really wasn't much that made it a better fire than most other fires out there. And yet Walter was acting as if she was going to single handedly save them all.

For a fire.

That any one of them could make.

She wanted to snap at Walter to _just chill_. But she couldn't very well tell him he was being inappropriate in front of their friends without being a hypocrite. _Let it go._

Great. Now that song was in her head.

She just wanted to get home. Forget a romantic week in Tahiti. She wanted her son to be safe in their condo and she wanted to get Walter alone without the risk of death hanging over them.

 _"Don't be jealous that me and my soul mate get along better than you and your soul mate!_ "

Soul mate. _God_.

There was a time for that talk. A place for that talk. And despite the fact that they'd been together for less than a day, she had such a good feeling about him, about the idea of him and her as an _us_ , that his words probably would have given her a warm feeling if he'd said them over dinner in Tahiti, or curled up next to her in her bed. But here – now? It all just felt awkward.

She had to talk to him. But down the beach. And she had to do it in a way that wouldn't discourage him, that wouldn't make him pull away again. She didn't think she could bear distance between them, despite how uncomfortable she was feeling right now, with his overzealous pet names and compliments. She had to make sure he knew she didn't think he would always be this awkward – because he wouldn't be. She always believed in him, even during times when it was easier emotionally for her to convince herself that he was a hopeless cause.

But most importantly, she loved him. So she wanted to tell him gently.

"Walt," she managed, hoping her tone sounded firm without intimidating him. "A moment?"

She could tell by the smile on his face that he likely hadn't picked up on her tone at all.

And when he trotted out _Dedication Paige_...

"Again...just like the flower you gave me in the middle of searching for something that...could have saved a man's life...it's really sweet...but, maybe not the right time for pet names?"

"Oh, okay." With all her annoyance, she was relieved when he didn't shut down. She half smiled as he rambled, explaining that because he'd never felt this way before, and now that they had said what they said to each other, all these feelings were just sort of spilling out of him. She understood.

"Just don't...try so so hard." _You love me. You can express it. But you don't have to prove it. I already know._ "I know how you feel, you know how I feel, let's just let it...progress naturally." She was smiling again, despite herself. _Remember what I told you on the plane. I feel so, so good about this._

Paige wanted to keep talking, but Cabe was calling to them. She gave Walter one last little look. _Let it progress naturally. It will. You've never done this before, but I have. I know what feels right._

She told him as much later, after her apology, as they bedded down for the night, Ralph snuggled up between them already asleep.

Walter smiled. The smile was the last thing Paige saw before darkness settled over the island.

She could get used to that. She just hoped they would live that long.


	2. Chapter 2

**I've started working again after being too sick to for four months. It's ten hour days on my feet, and I've been falling asleep within an hour of getting home, so until I adjust (or until I get too sick to work again but I'm hoping that's not going to happen) updates may be coming a little more slowly than is usual for me. It's going to be a while before I'm adjusted to being in the work force again, and while it'd be better for fic writing if I couldn't sustain this job, real life has to come first.**

* * *

Walter let out a long breath. Despite the light panting, he had a big smile on his face. "That was...intense."

Paige nodded, running a hand over her forehead to remove a stray lock of hair, easing her foot free from where it was twisted in the sheets. Part of her had been worried that once they were really able to do this, to shut themselves away for a night and be able to love each other properly, without time constraints or interruptions, that it would be disappointing. That their intense chemistry wouldn't translate to the bedroom and that their years of pent up tension would be completely unsatisfying to let loose. But she had worried for nothing. Ab – so – lute – ly nothing.

God, she hadn't felt so good in a long, long time. His touch lit her up like kindling and she felt his kisses through every atom in her body. When she wrapped her arms and legs around him she thought she might just want to stay that way.

And Walter had only called her two pet names that she had to think about what he was trying to say. It was always nice when she could just get caught up without having to think too hard. Paige reached over and ran the backs of her fingers along his cheek. "We're pretty incredible together, aren't we?" She asked with an affectionate giggle.

Walter's fingers splayed over her stomach. "Oh yes. Honestly. Incredible. _You're_ incredible." Paige blushed. Walter continued. "And I – I don't just mean this, this part. I mean, I just...it's everything about you. The sound of your voice and the way you smile and how your hair falls over your shoulders and...and your _eyes_ , and then..."

Paige tipped her head back up toward the ceiling and closed her eyes, listening to him continue to ramble. Apparently the little freckle on one of her breasts was _just another little thing_ Walter realized he loved about her. As were her stretch marks. And the way one of her toes was crooked because she'd broken it while on a scam with her mother when she was nine and it hadn't healed properly.

"And in terms of _this_ part," Walter said, the words rushing from between his lips, "being intimate with you, I just can't believe how different it is from any type of involvement I've had before. Because as you know, I've never loved anyone before you. Ever. And people have said it's different when you're in love and I just...I never realized just _how right_ they were. Everything about tonight was just so...so intense, so _present_ , and it's like I was more aware of everything because..."

"Walter." Paige opened her eyes and rolled on her side to face him. "Walter?"

"Hmmm? Yes? My beauty?"

Well, at least she didn't have to think about what that one meant. Paige put a finger to his lips, smiling. "Oh," Walter said. "I am...talking too much again. I'm sorry. I just...we aren't trying to save anyone and..."

"No," Paige said. "You're...this is an appropriate time. A completely inappropriate time." She scooted closer. "My brain is just still a little...you know, _whoo_ , and it's just a...it's a lot of words that you're throwing at me here." She hoped he wouldn't be hurt. Because he _was_ being open and honest and more than a little sweet, and that's exactly what she'd wanted from him for such a long time. She just wasn't used to someone being this talkative after sex, certainly not just going on and on about how amazing she was, and it was overkill, and she wasn't sure that she liked it. But she loved _him._

And there was nothing he had been saying that she didn't like to hear. Just maybe not...all the compliments at once.

Walter would probably have longer wedding vows than Toby did.

"Sorry," Walter said, kissing her on the cheek. "I'm just..." He gave a little shrug. "I'm just really happy."

"Me too," she said reassuringly, cupping his face in one of her hands and brushing her lips across his. _And even more so now that you've stopped with all the blabbering._

Walter slid his arms around her, tugging her against him, and Paige rested her forehead against his. Her eyelids were heavy, and now that he was quiet, she let herself surrender to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Raise your hand if you're still fanning yourself after that finale. Hoo boy, am I hot and bothered. (I am working on some smut relating to the end of 3.25, however I've encountered a fairly critical problem of not knowing what POV to write it in, which means I literally cannot even** _ **start**_ **the damn thing.)**

 **I'm about to head from Michigan to Maryland for the better part of a week, so there probably won't be any updates until Tuesday or Wednesday. I appreciate your patience, and I appreciate all the reviews because they're really what keep me motivated to publish. You all rock.**

 **Also I hope other people are writing Buckle Up Nerd fics because I need to read them about as badly as Paige needed to get on Walter.**

* * *

"I still don't see why I can't just build Ralph a laptop," Walter said as he and Paige marched through the store. "I made yours, and it would be a great project for the two of us to work on together."

"Maybe in the summer you two can work on that," Paige said. "But he needs one now and I don't want him to be distracted from his schoolwork working on a project with you. I know how you two get."

"His schoolwork is easy for him," Walter pointed out, looking confused.

"He still needs to learn to be diligent and set time aside for it. Those skills will aid him later in life." Paige located the display she'd seen in the ad in the mail and began reading the features on one of the laptops.

"Computers were an early love of mine," Walter said. "I used to read everything I could get my hands on about them, and sometimes Megan got me access to a room in the school that had one. Our family couldn't afford one. They were harder to come by in those days, I mean, people had them already but they weren't as commonplace as they were today. It was a big deal that our little school had one and even then it was just for teachers." He shrugged giving her a tiny grin. "Just saying. I had a huge obsession with computers - second only to the astronomy - and spent as much time as I could trying to figure them out. I turned out okay, you know."

Paige folded her arms and looked at him playfully. "You do know that's largely my doing."

Walter smiled. "Well of course it is, my little backside bus."

Paige stopped, tipping her head back slightly. "Uh, excuse me, what?"

People farther down the aisle were turning to each other, glancing their way. They'd heard what he said. Paige could feel her cheeks tinging pink with embarrassment.

"The backside bus of a computer!" Walter said with an ear to ear grin on his face, as if that explained everything. Paige was only a little bit relieved that _backside_ hadn't been referring to what she thought. "You know, _in_ a computer, the backside bus helps it run more efficiently because it performs routine tasks or frequently executed functions."

That explanation was enough for Paige to understand where he was going with this, but Walter continued, even as people began peering at them from other aisles through the gaps in merchandise. "And at Scorpion, you help run the business and do tasks that are routine – but absolutely necessary, of course – and that enables me to be more efficient. And in our _personal lives_ , well then you..."

"Okay Walt," Paige said, holding up a hand. She wasn't entirely sure what example he was going to give, but she did know that even if it was technically appropriate for someone to overhear, she really didn't want the half dozen or so people listening in to hear any more. "Can we please just get what we need to get and go back to the garage?"

"Of course," Walter said. "See, this is an example of you helping me work more efficiently by..."

"Walter." Paige grabbed his arm. "We need to take a little walk."

"Uh, I'm confused," Walter said, although he allowed her to lead him away without protest. "This is lowering the efficiency of our trip."

Paige located a corner of the store that was void of other people, and she pushed Walter behind a rack of games. "Walter, you know people were staring at us."

Walter furrowed his brow. "Wait, why?"

"Because you called me a backside bus in a very enthusiastic tone in the middle of a store."

"Ah. And you fear that perhaps those people are jealous of what a wonderful couple we make."

Paige furrowed her brow and opened her mouth to respond, then realized she had absolutely no idea where to start with that. "Um..." She tapped his chest. "Okay, so, I mean, yes. Yes, we make a wonderful couple. But...you know how you used to ask why people would have their tongues down each other's throats in public places? What you're doing is kinda the...verbal version of that."

"Oh." Walter nodded. "I see. Okay. I will refrain from being affectionate in public from now on."

 _No no no no no._ "Uh, no, no," Paige stammered. "That's not what I'm saying." She shook her head. "I like holding hands in public. And I like when you kiss my cheek in public. It's sweet. Just maybe in terms of audible affection...maybe refrain from ones that need to be explained."

Walter nodded. "Okay. Yes. Sure. I can do that." He cleared his throat. "I absolutely can do that...uh, honey."

Paige smiled. "See? That's a good one. I like that one."

"I'm sorry. I'm still getting used to this. We've been together almost six months. I should be better at this by now. My fears are right. I did regress on the island."

"Walter," she said, shaking her head. "No. No. You're great. You really are. You just have some things to learn - about dating, about me specifically...I still have things to learn about you too, you know." She stood on her tip toes - even though she didn't have to - and gave him a quick kiss. "Now let's go back and get Ralph the laptop."


	4. Chapter 4

**So I'm super frustrated trying to adjust to a new Windows, new Photoshop, new viding software. I want to throw things and cry. Writing isn't even helping; my frustration over all this is destroying my motivation for anything. It took me two days to write these 900 – ish words. But here's chapter four! One more instance of her not liking Walter being over – expressive, and then the time she really, really does. Any guesses on what that time might be?**

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"Morning, gang!"

The team members already in the garage looked up immediately. "Please tell us that we have a case," Sylvester said as Cabe walked purposefully toward them. "We're going through a dry spell."

"Morning, everyone," Toby said, announcing himself and Happy as they walked into the garage.

"Sorry we're late," Happy said, marching toward her desk without a second glance at Walter, Cabe, Paige, and Sylvester.

"Yeah," Toby said. "Sorry about that. We were…uh…well, there was touching."

"Alright, I stand corrected," Sylvester said. "Apparently _I'm_ the only one going through a dry spell."

"Case wise, we all are," Paige said, nodding at him. "Cabe?"

"Well, we might have a job," Cabe said. "A fella by the name of Alfred DeVos is on his way over…that may be his car now. He wants to meet you all before deciding if Team Scorpion is a good fit for what he needs to be done. Something about developing top of the line heat sensors."

"Seems simple enough," Toby said, walking over to Happy's work station. "I think the wifey here has some…"

Happy swatted his hand. "Don't touch that."

"You've changed from thirty minutes ago," he said, and she rolled her eyes. "But fine, hands off the technology." He held his hands up dramatically and winked in the others' direction.

The garage door opened and a tall, heavy set man with a three day beard walked inside. "Which one of you is Walter O'Brien?"

"Ah, that would be me, me," Walter said, walking across the room. "Right here."

"Al DeVos," the man said, extending his hand to Walter.

"Hello," he said, nodding as they shook hands. "What can we help you with? Cabe said you have a job for us?"

DeVos scanned the room. Sylvester sidled out of his line of sight, over to Happy and Toby. "When I was told about Team Scorpion, I wasn't aware it was a couple of guys hanging out in a garage…"

"Jobs and Wozniak started Apple in the garage of a residential home," Walter pointed out. "We have absolutely brilliant minds here. The man in the hat is a Harvard trained psychiatrist."

"So what," DeVos said, "is he going to psycho – analyze me?"

"Guarantee you he already has."

Toby turned from Happy to face them. "Affirmative."

"Happy is our engineer. She's the best in the world and that isn't an exaggeration in the slightest. I don't exaggerate. I find it obnoxious and unnecessary. Ditto with…with Sylvester over here."

DeVos raised his eyebrows. "He's obnoxious and unnecessary?"

"He means Sylvester is the best mathematician in the world," Paige said.

"Alright," DeVos said, appearing at least partially convinced. "And what about you? What's your role in all of this?"

"Ah," Walter said, beaming at Paige as he put his arm around her. "She's our translator. She helps us communicate with people who aren't like us." He leaned over and kissed her temple. "She's also the love of my life."

DeVos blinked. "What?"

Walter continued. "We're in love with each other. She's my girlfriend, technically, but that word doesn't really explain it, does it?"

"Walter," Paige said in a low voice.

"People in high school who have been dating for a week use the term 'girlfriend'. Paige here, she's…she's so…she's everything. And we work together so well too, it's like we're two halves of the same whole."

" _Walter_." Paige said through her teeth.

DeVos's eyebrow was raised. "I'm…happy for you?"

"Oh," Walter said, a big smile on his face as the arm around Paige tightened, pulling her closer so her left hip bumped his right, "thank you. Thank you so much. We're very, very happy."

"Hmmm." DeVos turned toward Cabe. "You and I talk outside?"

"Absolutely," Cabe said. He glanced at Walter before guiding DeVos toward the door.

"Well, we don't have a case today," Toby said. "Is anyone up for games?"

"We do have a case," Walter said, his arm still around Paige. "Did you not hear our conversation?"

"Did… _you_ not hear your conversation?" Sylvester asked.

"I don't follow."

"Walter," Paige said. "The guy came in to see about our company and you talked more about our relationship than the work that we do."

"Our reputation really ought to precede us by now," Walter said. "And what's so bad about talking about us?" He smiled fondly at her. "We're great."

"Yes," Paige said, putting her hand on his chest. "We are. But that's not the point."

"No one's life is at risk. And I didn't use a pet name."

Paige sighed. "No, but you didn't need to…say that much about our personal lives."

"Oh." Walter frowned. "I guess I didn't even realize I was doing it. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Paige said. "Just…Toby's probably right that we don't have a case today. This is just something else you have to work on."

"You don't like when I do this."

Paige glanced at the others. They vacated the room.

She turned back to Walter. "No," she said honestly. "I don't. Not when it affects work. And I don't think we will ever get to a point where we always like everything the other person does. But that doesn't make us any less good."

Walter bit his lip. "When you work on something, you always get it right so quickly. It's been seven months now and I'm still…"

"You're still in love for the first time and you're still in a fairly young relationship," Paige said, kissing him on the cheek. "You're right that I don't like when you do this. But I appreciate you trying so hard."

* * *

 **Extra props if you got the Friends reference. And infinite props to everyone who reviews!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm just trying to throw myself into writing and planning things to get over my frustration over all this new technology (I adore my new laptop, I really do, it's just the new Photoshop and video programs that are frustrating the crap out of me). Hopefully this fic will be finished tomorrow. Here to Stay will hopefully be updated by the end of the weekend.**

 **Again, thanks to everyone who reads and everyone who reviews! I've enjoyed reading your predictions about what the last chapter would be. A few of you guessed the content of this chapter would be chapter six – but not quite!**

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"Here, this is the card that I meant to get for you."

Walter cocked his head. Paige had given him an anniversary card that morning, and it was exactly the kind of sappy that he would have rolled his eyes at prior to meeting her. He took the card she had plucked from the display. On the front had a Bunsen burner, a pendulum, a beaker with some bubbling liquid, a triple beam balance, and what appeared to be an anthropomorphized water molecule. The text on the front read _want to hear a neat fact about science?_ Walter flipped open the card. Inside was nothing but three words: _You would. Nerd._

Walter looked up. Paige was smirking. "Well," he said, handing the card back to her, "it's not like they could put a science fact in a greeting card that I wouldn't have already known anyway."

"Nerrrrd," Paige said teasingly, grinning at him and waving the card pointedly.

"Is my nerdiness...doing anything for you?" He asked, tipping his head slightly to the side and raising his eyebrows playfully.

"It can't do anything for me until tonight," Paige reminded him. "We have a lot to do today!"

She was right. They were in the store now picking up items for the lunch time barbecue on the roof to celebrate two anniversaries – their first as a couple, and Happy and Toby's first as husband and wife. Then they would separate from the group for the evening; they had reservations at the new restaurant downtown. Walter was looking forward to all of it.

He couldn't believe it had been a year. On one hand, it felt like just yesterday she was looking into his eyes and telling him that she loved him, too. On the other hand, he almost couldn't remember what life was like before the two of them were a couple. Everything, including shopping with her, had felt incredibly natural right from the start. But Walter was done kicking himself for not taking the risk with her earlier. They were together now. And _that_ was what mattered.

"Hi, how are you guys doing today?"

Walter broke eye contact with Paige to look over and see a store employee looking at them with what Paige would call a classic customer service smile.

"We're great," Paige said.

"Anything I can help you folks with?" The woman asked. Her name tag said Kacy.

"Oh, I think we're good," Paige said. "It's our anniversary today, and our friends' wedding anniversary, so we were just picking up some stuff for barbecuing."

"Oh, well, happy anniversary!" Kacy said, smiling broadly at them. "How many years for you guys?"

"It's our first," Paige said. She looked at Walter affectionately.

Walter leaned in and kissed her.

"Aw, well you two make a very cute couple," Kacy said. She gave Walter a once over. "You seem like a very lucky lady."

"Oh no," Walter said. "I'm the lucky one. She's lovely."

"Aww," Paige said, tipping her head to briefly rest on his shoulder.

"You are," Walter said. "You're sweet, and loving, and absolutely stunning. Even in that tee shirt with the ink stain." He chuckled and turned back to Kacy. "We have no idea why it won't come out of the shirt."

"Aw, so cute," Kacy said, taking a step toward the display next to them and adjusting the sign.

"She's perfect, really," Walter said. "And I'm a genius – literally, my IQ is one hundred and ninety seven – and I know that perfect isn't a word that really ought to be used in most situations but I just can't help it when it's her. She's the love of my life and I can't believe it's been a whole year already."

"Well, if you two cuties need any assistance, you know where to find me, Kacy said with a smile. "Happy anniversary."

"Thank you. Thank you so much. I know we will have many more."

"Thanks, Kacy," Paige added. "We will let you know if we need anything. We appreciate your help."

As soon as the employee walked away, Paige looked at him in a way that he recognized. "Wait…what did I do?" He asked, confused. "You're looking at me like I did it again."

"Maybe a little."

He frowned. No one was in danger. They weren't on a job. This wasn't a professional contact. And he hadn't used the pet names, despite her being incredibly receptive to them earlier. He didn't understand. Kacy had been actively commenting on their relationship and all he had done was deny that Paige was the lucky one. "Please explain."

"That lady is a customer service worker. She probably genuinely thinks we're cute. But she doesn't know us and probably doesn't really care to hear about how amazing you think I am. It's just a bit over the top."

He bit his lip. "Okay."

"Generally, when people call us a cute couple, say thank you. You can even say something like, you know, I think so too, or I'm really lucky, or something like that, you know, people find that adorable." Her foot nudged at the loose wheel on the cart. "Going on and on…it kinda makes you sound…whipped. Or desperate. Or…" she shrugged. "It's still embarrassing for me, Walter. And I feel…so bad saying that on our anniversary. But…"

"I feel bad that I've made you uncomfortable on our anniversary," Walter said. "Let me go find Kacy and tell her…" he trailed off when he saw her face. "Let me stay right here and not say another word to Kacy about anything."

* * *

 **And next is the one time she does!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the delay, guys. I won't get into all the issues I'm having again. I'll just thank everyone for sticking with me. Hope you all enjoy this final chapter!**

* * *

When Ralph was born, Paige had been in labor for nearly thirty – three hours. Despite the statistics that suggested that subsequent labors would be shorter, here she was, again approaching the thirty – three hour mark.

"You're doing great," Walter said, placing his hand on her forehead and running it back through her hair.

"Mmm hmm," Paige said, shifting her weight.

Walter felt a pang in his heart. He knew this was normal. He knew babies were born every day. But he hated seeing her so exhausted. He hated seeing her in pain.

He leaned over her, taking her hand. "It's almost over," he said encouragingly. "She's almost here. Almost over, sweetheart. You're doing so good. So good."

"Walter," she said, tipping her head toward him and whimpering. "Walter, it hurts so bad."

"I know," he said, knowing that was the proper response even though he didn't actually know. He couldn't imagine. He thought a kidney stone was bad. But he supposed the sentiment was just that he knew that she was telling the truth, that he completely believed what she was saying to him. "I know it hurts, Paige." He kissed their laced knuckles. "It's almost over. You're almost there. And you're incredible, do you hear me? You're the most incredible person I have ever met."

Paige moaned loudly and tipped her head back against the headrest. She'd wanted to be in a reclined position rather than laying down, flat on her back with her feet in stirrups. Walter was pleased about that decision. It made pushing much more efficient, and they were nearing that point. She had been in transition for what felt like forever, and Walter knew no matter how long or short the labor, transition was the shortest phase.

"You're doing great," he repeated. She didn't have any more hair to brush back, but he repeated the motion anyway, hoping it would be comforting.

"Can I push?" Paige asked, looking down at where the midwife, Magdalene Lopez, was bent over, doing an examination.

"You're at ten centimeters," Magdalene announced, motioning toward her assistant, a much younger woman named Summer. "You can start pushing with the next contraction if you feel like it. Go nice and easy first, okay?"

Paige nodded, biting her lip. There were tears in her eyes. Walter didn't know if they were from pain or exhaustion. "It's almost over," he said again. "She's going to be here so soon. You're so incredible. So incredible." He squeezed her hand. "Hang on to me. You're okay. You're amazing, you hear me?"

Paige closed her eyes and grunted, her hand tightening around Walter's. "Good, Paige," Summer said, handing something to Magdalene. "Very good."

"Very good," Walter repeated, his lips near her ear. "Very good, very good."

Her head tipped toward his. He kissed her forehead. She relaxed slightly, her breath coming fast and hard. "Breathe," he said gently. "In, one, two, three. Out, four, five, six. There you go."

"Paige, if you can shift your right foot to the right just a tiny little bit…there, good, excellent," Magdalene said. "Give me another push, okay?"

"I'm so tired," Paige said, and Walter couldn't tell if she was whispering or if her voice was just hoarse. "Walter, I'm so tired. I'm so tired."

"You're almost done," he reminded her, kissing their knuckles again. "You can do this, Lovely, push with this next one, okay?"

Paige bit her lip. For all his reminding her to breathe, Walter swore he didn't breathe for the next three or four contractions. The breath rushed out of his lungs when Summer said "oh!" and Magdalene's quiet, soothing voice said. "The head is almost here. Give us another, Paige…good! Good! Summer."

Magdalene's tone changed on the last word, going to something more businesslike, and Walter could tell from his peripheral vision that the assistant was handing Magdalene something else. He couldn't tell what. He wasn't looking away from Paige.

"Paige, honey," Magdalene said, "the head is out. You're doing great. Do you want to touch her? She's got a lot of hair."

Paige reached with her free hand, around her stomach and between her thighs. Walter wanted to look, wanted to lean over and see his daughter, but he couldn't bring himself to move away from where he stood at Paige's side, even for a moment.

"There she is," Summer said encouragingly. "She's real and she's almost here."

Paige smiled, looking up at Walter, and bringing the hand she'd touched their daughter with up to cover her eyes. "See?" He said fondly, squeezing her hand again. "You're doing such an exceptional job."

"Are you ready to give another one?" Magdalene asked. "I know it's hard, but the sooner this is over the sooner you can hold your baby, okay?"

Paige nodded.

"Remember to breathe," Summer said.

Walter kept up his chant, telling her how great she was doing, how incredible she was, how unbelievably proud he was of her. Five, six, seven, eight more pushes, then Paige gasped and Magdalene _ah – ha_ 'd. "And we have two shoulders!"

"Shoulders," Walter joked to Paige. "We were hoping there would be shoulders."

"She'd expect that kind of joke from Toby, not you," Summer said. "She told me to say that if you made any lame jokes," she added when Walter looked at the assistant in surprise.

"Okay, now Paige," Magdalene said, "just give me a tiny one now. You aren't tearing and we want to keep things that way, okay? Just a tiny one – good!" She smiled encouragingly. "She's just about here."

Paige cringed, and Walter nearly did too at how tightly she was gripping his hand.

"Okay Paige," Magdalene said with a smile. "Reach down and pull her to you."

This was one reason that Walter and Paige had chosen her. She always let the mother's hands be the hands that brought their child into the world. Walter let go of Paige's hand.

"There you go," Magdalene said, still smiling, helping Paige position her hands properly. From where he was, Walter couldn't see much over Paige's belly. But then, suddenly, the baby was visible, accompanied from a gasp and whimper from Paige as she pulled her to her chest and started to cry.

"Wonderful, Paige," Magdalene said, still working between the woman's thighs. "We're getting you cleaned up a bit here, and Summer is going to look at your baby, but you can still hold her, okay? We're not taking her away from you. You just hold her and Summer will look at her vitals. But you hear her fussing a bit? She's perfectly fine."

Magdalene's comment had been spot on. The baby _did_ have a lot of hair. It was dark and thick and plastered to her head with the exception of one spot where it was sticking up – probably where Paige had touched earlier. Walter couldn't see much else; Paige's hands were splayed out all over the tiny body, holding her close. But perhaps that was a good thing. He was feeling so overwhelmed and shaky that he thought he might pass out if he _could_ see his daughter well.

He knew that women had babies every day. And he had known from the moment they found out about her existence that she was his and Paige's child. But it still felt like a miracle. It still felt almost surreal.

 _Cavemen did it. Arsonists do it all the time._

A tiny, niggling feeling of distress wormed its way into Walter's consciousness.

* * *

"Mom."

The voice belonged to one of the few that could cause Paige to willingly look away from the tiny person sleeping against her chest. Her son stood right in front of Walter in the doorway, both of them smiling. "Hey, Ralphie."

"I've told you at least seventy times," the boy said, "I'm fifteen. No more Ralphie."

"I just had your sister. I can call you whatever I want."

Her tone was playful, and so was his. Ralph smiled as he approached the bed. "She's cute."

"Yeah, she is," Paige said. "She's the exact size you were when you were born. Six pounds, seven ounces, and nineteen and three quarters inches long. Exactly like you were."

"The odds of that are not very high," Ralph commented. He gave a smirk. "You're consistent with the baby making, Mom. Same length of time, too."

"You were a week overdue and she was a few days early," Paige said, "but other than that, yep. Same labor duration, same size baby."

She was glad that Ralph seemed interested in his sister beyond the numbers she'd prepared for him. She had figured he would be – he seemed as excited as anyone about the new addition to their family. But there were still things about her son that she couldn't understand, and she'd been a little bit worried that perhaps his interest would be largely statistical.

"Can I hold her?"

"Absolutely," Paige said, shifting her hold on the baby. "Now remember, Ralph, if she cries, she's just fussing at being woken up. It doesn't mean she doesn't like you. Just talk to her. She'll know your voice."

Carefully, Ralph curled his arms around his sister and drew her against him, straightening up. Apart from an "eh" sound, the newborn didn't fuss, keeping her eyes closed and nestling against Ralph as if she didn't care where she slept, as long as she wasn't asked to go through the frightening birth process again. Walter walked up behind Ralph, keeping a hand out, ready, just in case.

"I knew she'd be little," Ralph said in a low voice. "But she's really little!"

"She'll be as tall as you are, one day," Walter said.

"No duh."

"Ralph."

Ralph cleared his throat, tipping his head down toward his sister and swaying back and forth slowly. "I wish I didn't have an exam today," he said regretfully. He addressed the baby in his arms. "You were due on a weekend, you know."

"She will forgive you for taking your test," Walter said, putting his arm around the boy's shoulders. "Right now all she cares about is being warm and clean and fed."

"Are you still going to name her Madeline?"

Walter and Paige nodded in unison. "Mimi for short," Paige said.

Ralph reluctantly handed the baby back, and Paige was glad to feel her daughter's warmth against her again. "Try to have a good day at school, baby," she said. "We may be home when you get out."

"I'll make dinner."

"You can't cook."

"Says who?" Ralph asked. "Cooking is a science. Plus we all like toast and I have the Darth Vader toaster."

Paige tilted her cheek so Ralph could kiss it, and her heart swelled when he leaned over and gently kissed the baby's head. She looked up at Walter when Ralph left, feeling yet another rush of emotion.

Walter leaned down and she tipped her head up, their lips locking. She felt one of his hands resting on where hers was on Mimi's back.

"I love you," she said, pressing her nose against his bottom lip. She was getting choked up again, at the closeness of Walter and their daughter. She pressed her nose more firmly against him, her voice laden with emotion. "I love you."

"I love _you_ ," Walter said, kissing her again. His voice sounded just as emotional as Paige knew hers sounded. "Thank you for her."

"Thank you," she said, reaching up and placing one of her hands on the back of his neck.

"Paige?"

"Mmm hmm?"

Walter sat down on the edge of the bed. "I need to apologize."

Paige blinked. He looked absolutely guilt ridden. "Wait, why?"

Walter bit his lip. "I know I messed up."

Paige reached out and grabbed his hand. "Walter, I'm confused."

"I was doing it again. R – rambling. Saying things in front of people and not b – being quiet. And when you were going through this, h – having our daughter…and it's like the fire on the island…but it still seemed so incred…I just…"

Paige was exhausted and almost couldn't think straight, and it took her a moment to realize what he was so sorry for. Her eyes widened. "Walter, no."

He stopped talking. "What?"

"Oh gosh, Love..." She placed her hand on the side of his face. "Walter, you were wonderful."

He cocked his head slightly. "I don't understand."

Paige shifted her weight, sitting up some, giving a gentle _shhh_ to Mimi when she gave a tiny cry. "Walter, women give birth all the time. And I've done it before today. But…it's still difficult. And discouraging. And draining." She shook her head slowly. "You were great." She smiled, feeling her eyes start to well up again. She'd forgotten just how emotional _everything_ was when she'd just had a baby. "You were absolutely everything I needed."

She saw the happiness on his face. "Really?"

"Really." She smiled. "You were perfect."


End file.
